Democratic members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs sent a letter to Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman, Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Acting Chairman Travis Hill requesting a longer comment period and more rigorous economic analysis of the agencies’ proposal to reduce the enhanced supplementary leverage ratio (eSLR). The lawmakers said changes to the post-Global Financial Crisis leverage backstop should be supported by robust impact analysis and clear rationale, and warned the proposal could have significant effects on the U.S. financial system. The letter cited an estimate that the reduction in eSLR requirements could lower global systemically important bank (GSIB) capital levels by more than USD 200 billion, and asked the agencies to quantify how the change could affect the likelihood of GSIB failures and other systemic risks, explain their conclusion that the proposal could increase costs associated with failures of insured depository institution subsidiaries of GSIBs, and estimate the potential additional costs to the Deposit Insurance Fund and the broader economy. The Senators requested responses to their questions by September 2, 2025, and asked that the agencies extend the proposal’s comment deadline by 90 days.
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs 2025-08-11
U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Democrats demand 90-day comment extension and stronger impact analysis on proposed eSLR reduction
Democratic members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs urged Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision, Comptroller of the Currency, and FDIC Acting Chairman to extend the comment period and conduct a thorough economic analysis of the proposal to reduce the enhanced supplementary leverage ratio (eSLR). They highlighted concerns about potential impacts on GSIB capital levels, systemic risks, and costs to the Deposit Insurance Fund and broader economy, emphasizing the need for robust impact analysis and clear rationale for the proposed changes.